Pumpkin

Diseases

Insect/Mite Pests

Abiotic Problems

• Edema

Diseases

Curly top

On-Line Resources:

• Pacific Northwest Plant Disease Management Handbook: Squash (Cucurbita spp.) – Curly Top.

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Powdery mildew

Disease: Powdery mildew
Pathogen: Golovinomyces cichoracearum (formerly Erysiphe cichoracearum) and Podosphaera fuliginea (formerly Sphaerotheca fuliginea)
Host crops: All cucurbit vegetables (e.g. cucumber, cantaloupe, melon, pumpkin, and squash). There are different races of the pathogens.

On-Line Resources:

• Cucumber, Pumpkin, Squash: Powdery Mildew, Washington State University Hortsense.

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Root rot

Disease: Root Rot
Pathogen: Pythium

On-Line Resources:

•  Pacific Northwest Plant Disease Management Handbook: Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) – Damping-off.
• Pacific Northwest Plant Disease Management Handbook: Cucumber (Cucumis sativus) – Damping-off.

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Suspected zucchini yellows + watermelon mosaic virus

Disease: Suspected zucchini yellows + watermelon mosaic virus
Pathogen:

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Suspected virus

Disease: Suspected virus
Pathogen: Unknown

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Verticillium wilt

Disease: Verticillium wilt
Pathogen: Verticillium species
Host crops: Numerous vegetables including many brassica vegetables (but not broccoli), cucumber, 
eggplant, pepper, potato, pumpkin, radish, spinach, tomato, watermelon, etc.

On-Line Resources:

• Cucumber, Pumpkin, Squash: Verticillium wilt, Washington State University Hortsense.
• See Diseases, pests, and other problems common to many vegetables: Verticillium wilt.

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Insect/Mite Pests

Aphids

Common name: Bean aphid, green peach aphid, melon aphid, and potato aphid
Latin binomial: Aphis fabae , Myzus persicae, Aphis gossypii, and Macrosiphum euphorbiae respectively
Host crops: In addition to tomato, eggplant and pepper, bean, melon, sweet corn, corn seed, carrot, cucumber, and eggplant the bean aphid can feed on spinach, Swiss chard, squash, pumpkin, and beet. The green peach aphid can feed on potato, tomato, eggplant, pepper, broccoli, cabbage, spinach, Swiss chard, squash, pumpkin, beet and many weed species including Brassicaceae (cruciferous) weeds. The melon aphid can feed on cucumber, melon, pumpkin, squash, spinach and spinach seed. The potato aphid can feed on cucumber, potato, melon, tomato, pumpkins, squash, and corn seed.

On-Line Resources:

• Pacific Northwest Insect Management Handbook: Vegetable crop pests-Aphid.
• Pacific Northwest Insect Management Handbook: Pumpkin and squash – Aphid.
• Common Insect & Mite: Aphids, Washington State University. Hortsense.
• See Diseases, pests, and other problems common to many vegetables: Aphids.
• For aphids on other crops see: potato, and squash.

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Squash bug

Common name: Squash bug
Latin binomial: Anasa tristis
Host crops: Cucurbit vegetables (e.g. pumpkin and squash).

On-Line Resources:

• Pacific Northwest Insect Management Handbook. Chapter: Vegetables, Section: Pumpkin and Squash, pt.2.
• Vegetables: Cucumber, Pumpkin, Squash: Squash bug. Washington State University Hortsense.
• See See Diseases, pests, and other problems common to many vegetables: Squash bug.

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Western flower thrips

Common name: Western flower thrips
Latin binomial: Frankliniella occidentalis.
Host crops: Basil, Cabbage,  Cauliflower, Cucumber, Onion, Potato, Pumpkin, Squash, Tomato and 
Watermelon.

On-Line Resources:

• Western Flower Thrips Thysanoptera: Thripidae Frankiniella occidentalis (pdf).
• Cucurbits: Thrips, UC IPM Online, University of California.
• See Diseases, pests, and other problems common to many vegetables: Western flower thrips.

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Abiotic Problems Common to Cucurbits

Edema

Problem: Edema
A physiological problem: prominent when air is cooler than the soil, soil moisture is high, and relative humidity is high. The low plant transpiration rates combined with an increase in water absorption by roots from the soil leads to increased cell turgor pressure, resulting in eruption of epidermal cells as the inner cells enlarge. Protrusion of the inner cells causes epidermal cells to die and discolor, resulting in a ’warty’ appearance that can be misidentified as a disease. In addition to foliar symptoms on some hosts, many cucurbit crops develop wart-like protruberances on the fruit.

On-Line Resources:

• OEDEMA – Ontario CropIPM, diseases-and-disorders.
• Edema – Plant Disease and Insect Clinic, North Carolina State University.

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